Day 12 - Week 3

Well, here we are in the final week of Intro to Culinary! I have completed two tests and I have made tons of fun dishes. I have only gotten one injury - that tiny little burn that made me cry like a girl and of course the tomato stains that I actually got out of my uniform thanks to some help from my Mom and some advice from my dear friend Carolyn. I am tired and worn out but I have learned so much about this crazy world of cooking that I love so much.

As far as our test yesterday, I feel like I did pretty well on the written and the knife cuts. For some reason though when I got to the cooking portion of the test, I couldn't have ordered more issues with my cooking! LOL First of all, we did have to do Pommes Anna and I practiced that over the weekend three times so I was R-E-A-D-Y! What happens? Somehow I burned it into the pan - not once but twice. I ran out of time and had to do what I could to present it to the Chef. He did say that it wasn't my worst dish but it sure wasn't my best dish. I know I never went under a B range on the production end of the test though so Woo Whoo! I will share my grade as soon as I get it!

Tonight was fun though! I got to make Hand Made Pasta Dough, Cream of Mushroom Soup, Fettuccini with Marinara Sauce, and Risotto con Fungi. As much as I was not into the idea of the mess with the pasta, I had a blast with it. I kind of felt like a kid again because we had a mess and a half going! The pasta came out really fresh and good though and I want a pasta maker now! I know I will never do it at home though so I guess I should save that cash! And those of you who know me well know that I don't like to have my hands dirty with flour and egg and all that... I know it is funny but it is me!

The Cream of Mushroom Soup was DEEEELish! It was probably my favorite dish tonight. I love mushrooms so it was oh so much fun! We used button mushrooms, oyster mushrooms and crimini mushrooms. All had wonderful flavor and when mixed with the velute sauce and the heavy cream.... well, you can just imagine the taste! WOW!

The pasta sauces were great because they had garlic! You all know my love affair with garlic I hope. YOU CAN NEVER EVER HAVE TOO MUCH GARLIC! That is my motto! The garlic and the onion and the fresh tomato made a magnificent marinara sauce. The alfredo was pretty darn good too with the garlic and freshly grated parmesan cheese. What can I say but YUM!

This week is going to be a crazy week because we only have two days of cooking and then on Friday we have our final exam. So be prepared to read about a lot of fun things. Hopefully I can come up with some pointers for some of you!

Cheers and Bon Appetit! Be well

Tony